Investigation of the drivers of abnormal behaviors from the perspective of health managers during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction: Considering the COVID-19 pandemic and its severe effects on life, there is no doubt that an analysis of the components and drivers of abnormal behaviors can facilitate the emergence of moral behaviors. Therefore, we conducted this study in order to investigate the drivers of abnormal behaviors from the perspective of health managers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: This research is a cross-sectional, qualitative, and applied study that was conducted using snowball sampling method and semi-structured interviews with 13 managers at different management levels in so called social security hospitals in Mazandaran province in the first half of 2020. Also, validation of Lincoln and Guba reliability criteria and data analysis were performed by combined summary content analysis method with MAXQDA10 software. Results: Findings of this study show that a number of factors are among the drivers that cause the occurrence of abnormal behaviors in hospitals. These factors could be divided into three types: Structural factors that include inadequate payroll system, job characteristics, organizational misconduct, and managerial weakness; behavioral factors include stress, aggression in the organization, antisocial behavior, and individual psychological disorders; and environmental factors as well as internal and external environment of the organization. Conclusion: Through increasing financial supports and incentives, results of this study help managers reduce stressors, create better conditions for employees, increase the quality of performance and services provided to patients, and improve the health level of the country.